Catching STL "City stockers", any advice?

[MOFishwater]

I know this topic is probably taboo to most of the diehard trout folks around here, but I figured I'd ask anyhow. I live in South STL city and live faily close to a few of the parks that Mo Dept of Cons stocks during the winter trout season. I'm mainly a bass fisherman, but I love to fly fish and gave my best efforts last winter to no avail. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions for flies to use to catch these stocked trout? Everyone, EVERYONE uses powerbait or something like that whenever I'm there, and I see lots of fish being hauled in. I've tried some wooly buggers and used some spinners w/ my light spinning rod (caught a nice fat largemouth, which was a nice surprise), just cant catch a darn trout. Only trout fishing I have done has been in rivers, lots of current...what should I throw at them in a stocked city lake w/ no current, is there anything that'll work aside from "cheating" and using powerbait? I dont want to stoop that low Thanks for any advice, feel free to just PM a reply if you dont want to expose yourself as one who also chases these lowly "dumb" stockers. Its all I can really get to in winter. thanks! MO Fishwater

[snagged in outlet 3]

I live in the metro area and have chased the winter trout here. Buggers, marabou jigs, glo balls and even dry flies have taken em for me. The key is long casts since they are in a lake they tend to stay away from the bank.

My best tip is to get there as soon as they stock em. Highly technical tip huh?

Snagged.

[Danoinark]

Mo FW

I am surprised the woolie buggers didn't produce. Perhaps you were using to large? What size? I would even go down to a size 12 hook in a wooley bugger for them stockers. I would try various retrieves with the wb also. Slow, Fast, Pause etc. I presume there is no current? If you can pick a day where the wind is causing some good riffles you could probably use some large scuds and or midges under an indicator. The wind would help give some motion to the fly. You could also slightly strip them too. I also would try some soft hackles strip retrieved. I don't know but for many any trout in calm water is a challenge for me. I just got to believe the wooley is the ticket...Dano

[Gavin]

Which lakes are you fishing? I havent fished Busch Wildlife or Jefferson lake during winter mud puddle trout season, but I fish Tilles and Suson occasionally. Roostertails, buggers, leaches, and little marabou jigs, and nymphs work pretty well until the start allowing folks to use bait after that the fishing really declines.

FWIW, MDC did a study on the winter lakes a few years ago, they found that there primary food was nypmhs & baitfish until the bait season opened. After that, their main diet was prepared baits, corn, etc.. Cheers.

[Terry Beeson]

I'll post my power bait fly recipe if you'll post your cheese and marshmallow fly pattern, Dano....

My fly club in Jonesboro sponsors a "trout tank" every year at the sports show there in February. The kids are allowed to "fish" for trout during the show (the rest of them go to the city winter stocking program in Arkansas.) Maribou and clouser type flies in a 14-12 size work well...

I'm thinkin' Dano is right... maybe you're not going small enough. Other than that, keep the fly in the water and twitch it periodically.

I was fishing the Norfork a couple years ago and not doing too well. I started back upstream and was passing a guy standing in the middle of the river with his fly rod in his hand... I never noticed him casting or stripping while coming up to him. We started talking and he told me he had a #12 WB sitting on a stack of stockers (which were abundant in the area) and I watched him land two before he invited me to join him.

We simply cast downstream to the right of the fish, let it drift into the stack, then waited... twitching the line every 10-15 seconds... Usually within the next 3-5 minutes, we would get a hit.

I went downstream to watch and it was just like the trout tank. The fish would sit there and all the sudden one would break off and hit the bugger....

We had both fished our arms off using other tactics all day with no results until he came upon the sit and wait technique by accident...

[Danoinark]

Terry

Actually I have a picture of a cheese fly somewhere. I think its on the office computer. If I can find it I will post it....

Dano

[Terry Beeson]

Does it happen to have a mouse attached to it?

The things you can tie using deer hair...

I wonder how effective the Nemo fly would be?

There was a guy at the Spring River in AR that tied a "fish food" pattern that looked just like the fish food they feed the fish at the hatchery... It was very effective at the right time below Dam 3... wonder why?

[jdmidwest]

We have winter stockers here in Jackson. Small olive woolies or nymphs have worked here. A different kind of fishing, kinda like Taneycomo in low water. Later on in the winter the fishin gets better. We have had a problem with construction sediment for the last year. Darker colors in the chocolate milk water. It helps to kill and hour or 2 after work during the week but its really not trout fishin to me....

[MOFishwater]

Thanks for all of the suggestions, guys! I'll def give them all a try this upcoming season. As I was saying in my first post, I'm really just a bass fisherman that loves using a flyrod. I'm quite a novice when it comes to, well, flies in general, and of course, fly sizes. I'd say the wooly bugger I was using was probably too big, I get a lot of my flies from a buddy who ties his own trout flies and he'll whip up some bigger versions for my bass addiction or for specific float trips (very nice of him). I got a nice new rod for my birthday from my old man, so I'll be better suited for the lighter tackle/lines, I'm generally "beefed up" for bass poppers around cover.

The city areas i frequent are the forest park lakes (I work across the street) and Carondolet Park's "Boathouse" lake. Wind is normally prevalent, so maybe the indicators suggested would be a good idea...

Thanks again for all of the great suggestions. I always enjoy posting on this site, its wonderful to get a factual, helpful response from people. Many of the other sites I visit will give you plenty of heckling and misinformation instead of just trying to help out. I sincerely appreciate the tips! I'll be sure to post a pic of my first "trophy" when it happens. I dont think the MDC agent that checked my permits last year believed me when I told her I was just taking pics of anything if I caught it instead of taking it home to eat...I saw more people ticketed around those lakes for lacking permits than anywhere by a longshot. The odds of being checked seem to be pretty high, which doesnt bother me in the least. Glad someone is keeping the "cheaters" in check!

[GregSTC]

I've been fishing the five lakes at Busch Wildlife for the last few years. The natural bait guys hit lakes #22, #23 and #24. Lakes #21 and #28 are catch and release until Feb 1. On Thur 11/2 they stocked 1500 in #21 and 2500 in #28.

I have not had any luck with dry flies but I have done well with small BHPT and small mini jigs. 1/80th oz down to 1/120th oz sparsely tied in cream and olive. Similar to the John Dear and Beadspread. I've seen people doing well with smaller wooly Buggers and small Soft Hackles as well.

Winter before last my son caught a 24" 3 pound Rainbow in Feb on a gold mepps aglia grizzly hackle. I've seen some monsters overfive pounds as well.

Cover the water S-L-O-W-L-Y!!! The fish can and are everywere even hugging the banks.

Satturday 11/4 should be great starting around mid morning. It's going to be 56 degrees and mostly cloudy.

I'mgoing to start with a #14 Crackleback and a #18 BHPT dropper. If that doesn't work then I'm going to the mini jigs under a float.

Mike